Azrael
by AnthyRose
Summary: Like an angel he appeared, rescuing her from a would-be attacker. But shy Bashira is unaware of the reaper that stalks her, especially when she finds herself falling for her darkly handsome savior. But this stranger has a secret; This stranger is Death.


Disclaimer: I do not own the Night World Series.  
  
  
  
~Prologue~  
  
  
  
  
  
Everyone has to go some time...  
  
....and right now her time was up.  
  
  
  
He'd been watching her for some time now.  
  
It wasn't like him to play with his prey like this. But something about this one intrigued him, although from what he could see there was nothing particularly special about her. At times she seemed acutely aware of his presence..glancing up suddenly without warning, as if feeling his eyes on her. It was something that was to be expected. The prey usually sensed when a predator was near, and this one was no different. Several times he'd purposely bumped into her; a bold move he knew, but he couldn't help himself. She amused him, this girl, but he didn't know why.  
  
The first time he'd faced her was on a cool, windy day. She'd been preoccupied; she was already late to her art class and her papers kept blowing out of her hand. She barely glanced up when he'd walked into her, and didn't even pause as she breathlessly murmured an apology.  
  
  
  
The second time he ran into her, weeks later, she was more aware. She wasn't in so much of a hurry now, walking at one of her slow dreamy paces. He'd discovered that such was rare for her, since she always seemed so self conscious and nervous out in the open. But now she took her time, gazing into the late afternoon sky and up at the trees, tinged in gold, which were just starting to feel the effects of an early fall. He'd been standing a few yards in front of her for quite some time before she noticed him, and by then she was only a few feet away. She seemed startled, hesitating, almost taking a step back. Or at least it seemed that way to him.  
  
He shot her one of his dazzling smiles.  
  
"Hello there," he greeted in his low voice, and she'd smiled shyly, murmuring a soft hello and preparing to detour around him. He'd side stepped however, and she nearly ran into him. The girl hastily backed away, apologizing.  
  
"D'n worry," he grinned noting her nervousness. "Listen. Can you direct me to the....office? I seem to be lost." He hadn't rehearsed on what he'd say to her, but luckily she didn't seem to notice. Without hesitating, she turned, pointing over her shoulder in a youthful childlike gesture.  
  
"It's back that way," she explained. "That very first building over there with the big tinted windows." He cursed himself silently for choosing such an easy location, and if not for the fact that they were in the open, he'd have taken her right then.  
  
But there were rules.  
  
And he couldn't afford an outing with the Night World right now.  
  
So he'd left, leaving her intact for the time being, walking slowly towards the named building. He hadn't really needed to go there, and as soon as she was out of sight, he'd detoured to the parking lot and towards his car.  
  
He'd be back.  
  
He didn't let his prey go THAT easily. He'd come back one day...when things were less conspicuous...when it was darker - he was always more at home in the dark. It was his territory, his time. He was the hunter and she was next on his list of prey.  
  
And nothing could escape him.  
  
  
  
~***~  
  
  
  
  
  
Bashira quickened her pace, clutching the dollar in her fist tightly. It was a shame really..she shouldn't be out this time of night on campus, especially alone. But she had an uncanny sweet tooth and had just gotten the strangest urge for skittles. Unfortunately for her, all the machines in her building were out, so that she had to walk all the way to the main student office, which was at least a good thirteen minutes away from her dorm building.  
  
She cast uneasy eyes to her surroundings. Normally she loved the night. Late evening and twilight were actually her favorite times. But now something eerie and cold seemed to caress the deserted campus, and the full comprehension of where she was struck her like a blow.  
  
She was a girl. It was 3 o'clock in the morning. And she was out here alone in her pajamas and sandals.  
  
She suddenly felt afraid, vulnerable. Why had she done this? Why couldn't she have just gone back to sleep and waited till morning? For a moment she considered turning back; it was cold and breezy and her thin cotten pj's and summer-time sandals offered no real protection against the night air. But she was halfway there already, and she hated to turn back empty handed. So she steeled herself against the jittery feeling she was getting, telling herself it was just the wind and plowed on into the dew covered grass.  
  
It was a decision she would later regret.  
  
She continued walking quickly towards the darkened student office. It was usually unlocked since the campus mail center was located inside. With a sigh of relief her sandaled feet hit the elaborate brick steps. She swung open the heavy glass door and stumbled inside.  
  
It was dark.  
  
That was her first thought. Dark and scary. She hadn't realized that they shut off all the lights. Oh well. There was still a faint glow radiating from the snack machines. Smoothing her now crumbled dollar, she carefully slid it in, straining to see the number of the row of skittles. That's when she heard it.  
  
A faint sound, like the padding of a soft footstep.  
  
She would have missed it altogether had she not paused to see those numbers. But she HAD paused, and now she froze, chocolate brown eyes going wide with fright. Was there someone here? Maybe it was just a security guard. She turned hopefully, scanning the dark area. Her eyes had adjusted somewhat, thanks in part to the glowing snack machines. But she didn't see anyone...not even a flashlight beam. Her throat went dry. If it had been a security guard, wouldn't he have had a flashlight or at least called out?  
  
She frowned.  
  
Something was wrong. Turning quickly, she punched in the number for the skittles, hoping it was right. She'd really hate to leave without them.  
  
She jumped at the soft thunk the candy made as it hit the machine exit. Stupid, stupid! Why hadn't she thought? Whomever was there HAD to have heard that. Grabbing the candy, she dashed out, totally forgetting about her change. She sped down the steps and onto the ground, slipping on the dew slick grass. She got up, scarcely able to breath. Something was behind her..she'd heard the silent squeal of the glass door, the near silent pounding of feet on grass.  
  
And then something slammed into her.  
  
She cried out, or tried to. A heavy hand was clasped over her mouth, and she felt hot breath on her neck. She was frozen with fright.  
  
'How could this happen to me?,' she wondered dazedly. This wasn't supposed to happen! This was something you heard about on the evening news...Something- She couldn't cry; was too shocked to cry. She felt something thin and silky slid down her shoulder. Her scarf had unwound itself from her head, and a second later she felt tendrils of hair brushing against her face. What was going to happen to her?  
  
RAPE!, her mind screamed. MURDER!  
  
But her captor was doing neither...nuzzling at her neck roughly, seeming to search for something. An eerie image of Nosferatu popped into her head and she suddenly began to struggle. Maybe it was the shock wearing off..or maybe it was the fact that she'd recently seen the Queen of the Damned movie and still had vampish scenes playing in her head. Whatever the reason, she was out of her daze, struggling frantically in the iron-like grip to escape. The hands tightened, and she could hear a growl of annoyance near her throat before she was slammed face first into the dirt.  
  
Her face stung, and her eyes immediately began to water. It was too strong..too much for her to handle-  
  
And suddenly the weight was thrown off her, and she could hear the skid of her captor's form skidding unceremoniously on the damp grass. For a moment she stayed still, blinking the dirt from her eyes. And then she was being hauled up firmly by the shoulders, staring into the broad chest of a man.  
  
She stiffened.  
  
Slender fingers went to lift her chin and she found herself gazing up into a shadowed face.  
  
"You're ok," a voice assessed finally, giving her a pat on the head as if she were a child. "It's dangerous out at night, you know. Little girls like you could get gobbled up." His voice held a hint of mischeviousness. She backed away then, eyes beginning to water as the full impact of the situation finally dawned on her.  
  
She had almost been-  
  
Turning, she raced back towards her dorm building, the forgotten candy still clutched in her grasp. It didn't occur to her to look to the now empty spot where her captor had fallen. Nor did it occur to her to wonder who her savior was. If she had looked back at all, infact, she would have seen nothing.  
  
The man was gone.  
  
  
  
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